Emergency Preparedness

Nobody likes to think about emergencies, but they are a fact of life. Sometimes it's just you and your family, and other times it may be the entire city. Here are several important actions you and your family (or you and your business associates) can take to make sure you are prepared for an emergency:

Water problems: If you need your water turned off for broken pipes or plumbing fixtures, and if it is during the hours between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday - Friday, please call 1-707-961-2825. If your problem is outside these hours, please call the Fort Bragg Police Department, at 1-707-964-0200

Sewer problems: If you have sewer backing up in your residence or property and you are not using any water or appliances that use water (that could cause the backup) and if it is during the hours between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday - Friday, please call 1-707-961-2825. If your problem is outside these hours, please call the Fort Bragg Police Department, at 1-707-964-0200

6. Know Where to Get Information during Emergencies

City Web Site: you can find information on the home page about any emergency or disaster situation that affects the city. City Manager Linda Ruffing is the emergency services director for the city, and her office will place updates on the Web site as applicable

PG&E puts much focus on being prepared before an emergency or a natural disaster, and the company urges its customers to do the same.

Downed power lines:

Stay away from downed power lines. Treat all downed power lines as if they are energized and extremely dangerous. Keep yourself and others well away from them and immediately call 911, then notify PG&E’s 24-hour emergency and customer service line at 1-800-743-5002.

If your vehicle comes in contact with a downed power line, stay inside. The safest place is in your car as the ground around your car may be energized. Honk the horn, roll down the window and yell for help. Warn others to stay away as anyone who touches the equipment or ground around the vehicle may be injured. Use your mobile phone to call 911. Fire department, police and PG&E workers will tell you when it’s safe to get out of the vehicle.

If there is a fire
and you have to exit a vehicle that has come in contact with downed power
lines: Remove loose items of clothing. Keep your hands at your sides and jump
clear of the vehicle, so you are not touching the car when your feet hit the
ground. Keep both feet close together and shuffle away from the vehicle without
picking up your feet.

Be prepared before storms arrive:

·Have battery-operated flashlights and radios with fresh batteries ready. Listen for updates on storm conditions and power outages.

·If you have a cordless phone or answering machine that requires electricity to work, have a standard telephone or cell phone ready as a backup.

·Freeze plastic containers filled with water to make blocks of ice that can be placed in your refrigerator/freezer during an outage to prevent food from spoiling.

·If you have a stand-by generator, notify PG&E and make sure that it’s installed safely to avoid risking damage to your property and endangering PG&E workers who could be working on power lines in your neighborhood. Information on the safe installation of generators can be found on our website at www.pge.com/generator.

If outages occur:

·Candles pose a fire risk. Avoid using them during a power outage. If you must use candles, keep them away from drapes, lampshades and small children. Do not leave candles unattended.

·If your power goes out, unplug or turn off electric appliances to avoid overloading circuits and fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.

Before calling PG&E about a power outage:

·Sign up for PG&E’s outage alerts, which provide customer updates via phone calls, texts or emails. Go to your My Energy account or click on www.pge.com/outages for more information.

·Check to see if other neighbors are affected. This will confirm if an outage is impacting the neighborhood or just your residence.

·If you don’t see your outage listed on PG&E’s outage maps, report your outage to PG&E's Electric Outage Information Line at 1-800-743-5002.Note that PG&E’s phone lines may become very busy during major storms.